On the Trail in Kane County          

Like a hike in the woods, the Kane County Trail system grew one step at a time The Kane County trails are dotted with picnic areas, like this one found alongside the Fox River Trail in the Fabyan Forest Preserve near Geneva.

Providing areas for our expanding population to enjoy the outdoors isn't easy. Large tracts of undeveloped land — such as Joliet Arsenal or Site M — rarely come on the market, and when they do, they can be extremely expensive. The alternative for cash-strapped state and local governments is to gradually expand existing areas througt the acquisition of adjacent parcels or to attempt to link areas, usually by acquiring abandoned railroads. The idea of linear parks may seem new, but in Kane County a few visionaries realized as far back as the late 1940s that these rails-to-trails conversions would someday offer great recreational opportunities. W.L. "Les" McCullough, Virgil Gilman, Gunnar Anderson and Phil Elfstrom all had prominent roles in the development of the trail system. McCullough, Gilman and Anderson all are deceased, but each lived long enough to see his dream become reality.

"When you do a story on trails, you really have to give credit to the individuals here in Kane County who were setting the stage for these trails," said Jon Duerr, current superintendent of the Forest Preserve District.

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Hiking and biking are the most popular activities along the Fox River Trail. An old stone bridge takes bikers and hikers to Island Park near Geneva.

McCullough, who served 34 years as president of the Fox Valley Park District, was a driving force behind the creation of the district, which was established in 1947. Gilman, who served 30 years as director of the Fox Valley Park District, fought to expand public access to the fox River from the 66 feet available in 1946 to the 30-plus miles open today. Anderson, the first Kane County Forest Preserve superintendent, was an early and strong proponent of both the Kane County trails system and the Illinois Prairie Path. Elfstrom, former president of the Kane County Forest Preserve Commission, was instrumental in getting communities along the river to back the purchase of abandoned railroads.

Duerr also credits the communities along the trails. "The Forest Preserve District may be the leader in this program, but we really would not be anywhere without the cooperation of our park districts," he said. "Mr. Elfstrom's strongest forte was developing the cooperative arrangement with the park districts, beginning with the Fox Valley Park District in Aurora, and moving on to Batavia, Geneva, St. Charles, Elgin and Dundee."

Beginning with a 3.5-mile stretch of abandoned Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad roadbed purchased for $2,700 in the late 1940s, the county now has nearly 90 miles of trails that are used by upwards of 700,000 people each year.

The county has three major trails: the 35-mile Fox River Trail, running from Aurora to the McHenry County line; the 18-mile Great Western Trail, extending from St. Charles to Sycamore in DeKalb County; and the 10.5-mile Virgil Gilman Trail, which runs from Aurora to the Bliss Woods Forest Preserve near Sugar Grove. The Fox River Trail also is the western terminus for the Elgin, Batavia and Aurora branches of the Illinois Prairie Path, which heads east through DuPage County into Cook County.

Most of the trails have asphalt surfaces. In some of the rural areas along the Great Western Trail, "screenings" made from limestone chips cover segments of the trail.

Duerr, who has been a Forest Preserve District employee since 1985, said he and Dave Perfect, one of two operations supervisors, have teamed up to build a lot of the trails.

"We did an awful lot of learning on the job and actually experiencing the mistakes of the past and being able to correct those things," Duerr said. "We learned how to build a trail, a lot about curvatures, what surfaces to use. At that time there were no standards for building or design, so we did a lot by trial and error."

Finding the funding to build the trails has also been a matter of trial and error.

Laura Ross of Schrader and Associates, the county's grant coordinators, said approximately 80 percent of the trails have been built with matching grant assistance from such diverse sources as the Department of Conservation, the Department of Transportation, the Kane County Community Development Program, the federal Small Business Administration and private foundations.

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This 68-foot windmill was built in the 1850s and moved to its current site in the Fabyan Forest Preserve near Geneva in 1914.

She added that the grants have paid off in terms of economic development, noting the trails have spawned more than 20 restaurants, seven bike shops and the renovation of four abandoned factories into commercial facilities. Even the new riverboat gambling operation in Elgin has taken the trails into consideration, including washrooms and a snack bar for trail users in its design plans. Ross said more grant monies are currently pending for Kendall County to the south and McHenry County to the north so the Fox River Trail can eventually stretch from Silver Springs State park in Yorkville to Chain O'Lakes State Park near the Wisconsin border. Duerr estimates that the Forest Preserve District spends about a half-cent per year per user on trail maintenance. "The trails are probably our most popular operation and are the least expensive per capita to maintain," he said. Perfect said seven different community organizations — ranging from the Isaac Walton League to Boy Scout troops to the St. Charles Lions Club — have adopted about 10 miles of trails, with more groups wanting to get involved.

"They do litter pickups, give us reports on the condition of the trails, anything that should be taken care of by our staff," Perfect said. "Having groups adopt trail sections is something we just started and, it's catching on real big. We're in the process of putting signs up [to delineate adopted sections], and I think once we get the signs up, it will get other groups involved. It's got to work on both ends for the whole thing to work, so I make sure I do my end of it as soon as they tell me about something that should be taken care of. They're good groups to work with, and it makes my job easier." Perfect also works with owners of property adjacent to the trails, usually on landscape maintenance. "A lot of times where it's overgrown, they want to clear it out so they can have a clear view," he said. "I meet with them and mark what needs to be cut. Then we cut it and send a crew to chip up the brush." The cooperation of neighbors and community groups is notable, Perfect said, because in the beginning most of the neighbors were opposed to the development of trails. "They were all opposed, but they're not now," he said, adding that some have gone so far as installing distinctive gardens for trail users to enjoy.

Low water provides kids with the opportunity  to walk out to an abutment on the South  Batavia dam along the Fox River Trail and  jump into the cool water below.

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Fishing provides another pastime for recreationists along the Kane County Trail system. This angler has just landed a nice fish below the South Batavia Dam.

Duerr said the trails have become a plus for owners wanting to sell their property. "Houses that are anywhere near a trail will put in the (real estate) listing that it's near the bike trial. It's become a major selling point." The proximity of the Fox River Trail to residential areas means it draws a variety of users. Hiking and biking are probably the most popular uses, but there are also skateboarders, rollerbladers and even kids on Big Wheels. The more rural Great Western and Virgil Gilman trails also draw bird watchers, horseback riders and snowmobilers on portions designated for those types of activities.

The different uses people have for the trails can lead to problems. Chuck Budde, chief of the Forest Preserve District police, said crime on the trails is insignificant, but user conflicts can create some problems.

As an example, he cited the trails near Batavia. "There was a snowmobile trail in Batavia, and the city grew up around it," he said. "Now we get complaints from the citizens in the new subdivisions about snowmobiles running back and forth on the trail, even though they're entirely legal."

Duerr said the illegal use of all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) on the trails also is an ongoing problem in terms of safety and damaged habitat, but most users seem to know each other's limitations and get along well together.

"I would say our biggest conflict is between the long distance bike riders and the recreational riders," Perfect said. "The guys who want to crank out 100 or 200 miles a day, I think have basically resigned themselves to the fact that they're going to be out on the country roads because they've been outnumbered by the families and recreational riders on the Fox River Trail."

Today's Kane County Trail system is a model that can be adopted by other communities across Illinois as they search for ways to stretch both their available public land and recreation dollars.

"A lot of downstate people think if they install trails they will turn into highways for crime," Perfect said. "I've conducted numerous tours for park boards and municipal officials that were opposed to trails. We let them look to see what we have, and I feel they go home with a different attitude. If anyone wants to see, I'd be happy so show them."

John Allen is a staff writer for the Illinois Department of Conservation. This article originally appeared in the September issue of Outdoor Illinois *

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